Friday, July 30, 2010

Deb and I are off to Clovis, Ca today to teach at Pocketful of Treasurestomorrow. We taught here last year so we are looking forward to seeing friends Megan and Janice (who are so very nice) and the many ladies who we met the last time around.
There is a make and take party from 5 - 6:30 tonight with a super cute make and take and lots of prizes.
Tomorrow we are teaching two classes...a journal and the house. You can get more information here.

Next Friday night, Aug 6th we be at Scrap n' Yap in Monrovia for another make and take party and a different set of classes on Sat the 7th.

If you are interested in any of the classes, give the stores a call to see if there are any spots left. If you don't live in the area, but are interested in a kit send us an email. We made a couple of extra kits that might be available after the classes.

Cut out the postcard on both sheets of Mesofauna paper.
The book paper on the backside was used to cover the body of the box.

Cut out the vegetable print.
The green print on the backside was used for the inside edges of the box.

Cut out a piece of matching chipboard for the vegetable print and ONE of the postcards.

Use a glue stick (I like ThermOWeb's Super Stick) to adhere paper to chipboard pieces. It is important that the glue extends to the edges. Use a bone folder or brayer to secure paper to chipboard. Repeat process for the postcard.

Use Ranger Distress ink to age the piece. I like Frayed Burlap or Vintage Photo but you can really use any of the Distress colors.

Clip off the corners (just a bit)...nothing old still has it's corners in tact.

Use a Tonic edges distress tool to rough up the edges. This is a great little tool! Super simple to use and such a cool effect in the aging process.

Go all the way around the card till the edges look like they are curled and worn. At this point you can decide if you want to add more ink to the edges or leave the bit of white showing. Now repeat the steps for the postcard. Once you are done with both pieces set aside until you are ready to place in the shadowbox. NOTE: I used foam tape to raise things up off the back of the box as well as hold up the right edge of the postcard since it is slipped in between the book cover and vegetable print.

Moving on to the branch...
I pick up sticks all the time and keep them in a bin just for this kind of thing. I find that if I am in need of a stick or branch in a project I never have the time to go looking for one or I can't seem to find the right shape or size, hence the gathering when I see one on the ground.

For this piece I decided to use some dyed cheese cloth. Super cheap, I always keep some on hand. Boil about 4 cups of water and put in a couple tea bags. Let them steep. Remove the tea bags and add the cheesecloth (the water is HOT so use a wooden spoon to submerse the cheesecloth). Let the cheesecloth sit in the tea for 3 - 5 minutes. Keep in mind, it always looks darker when it's wet. Ring out and hang outside to dry. I just throw mine over the back of the patio chair and it comes out fine.

So this is what the cheesecloth looks like when it's dry. The large piece is cut from the main piece I dyed. The second piece is a strip cut from the first, then opened up to one layer. The third piece is the other half of the second piece that I have stretched into a strip to use as a tie. I love how you can manipulate the cheesecloth to what you need it to be. Same fabric, yet 3 distinct looks.

I took the cheesecloth (the second thin piece from the picture above) and wrapped it around the stick. Then I took the piece I stretched and used it to secure the first piece. I added some vintage leaves and an old hat pin.

Now the bottle...
Using the second postcard you cut out (not the chipboard one!), cut out the return address part of the postcard.

Use distress ink to age the label and then adhere it to the bottle. Looks like it was ment to be there doesn't it?

Just a word on bottles...
I usually find bottles in antique stores, but old or new they rarely have a cork top which I love. I found that Michael's sells cork stoppers in a little bag (usually by the jingle bells and the googly eyes). If the cork doesn't fit the bottle I just add a bit of cheesecloth...problem solved.

Wednesday, July 28, 2010

Forgotten Repository

The Forgotten Repository is a shadowbox I made for the 7gypsies boothusing the newConservatory paper, one of two collections that will be introduced at CHA this week. There was some interest in the piece so 7gypsies asked if I would show how I made it (it really is very simple). I am sure you could figure it out on your own, but just in case, I will give you the step by steps here. If you visit the 7gypsies blog you will find the template (pattern) for cutting the pack of 8 x 8" book board I used to make it. If the template is too small to read, drag it to the desk top and print from there. It will print full size.As always, I use a rotary cutter, acrylic ruler and self healing mat when cutting book board. It is the best home method I have found.

Once your book board is cut you should have:
One 6 x 8" back piece
Ten 1 1/2 x 8" pieces
Two triangle shaped roof pieces

Step one-
You will need 8 of the 1 1/2 x 8" strips (the other two strips are for the roof)
Glue two strips together (I like Glossy Accents for this) to make one thicker strip. Repeat until you have 4 doubled strips.
NOTE: You can make this box with single pieces of book board but I felt because of the size it needed to appear thicker, like it really could hold up a roof. This is totally optional of course, really just a matter of taste.

To form the box you will need the back piece and the 4 thick strips you just created.

Use a liquid glue to adhere the sides to the back. Hold in place till dry.
Lay end piece next to opening. Mark cutting line.

Use a piece of packing tape to secure the two strips together as shown.

Set strip piece on top of the triangle (NO glue yet). Mark length with a pencil and cut to size.

Once the two strips are cut to size, glue in place. Wait for glue to dry a bit before adding second triangle shape.

Add second triangle piece to top. Wait again for glue to dry before adding to the box.

Once the glue is dry, slide roof shape over top of the box. It should be nice and snug. You may want to wait to add any glue (to make it a permanent fit) until after you have completed covering the box and roof with paper.

So there is is basics to making the house shape. Easy, right? Next time, I'll show how I built the inside, what papers you will need and some simple tricks to making new paper look old so you can build your own Forgotten Repository.

Sunday, July 25, 2010

My friend Liz and I had a great time at the fair! It was super hot. Okay, not Arizona hot...but hot still the same. We both came away with a bit of a sunburn.
Next year -
Wear sunblock.
Check.

We have been friends since forever so I felt it was okay to show her in the owl photo op. Friends let friends take their picture even when they might looks silly. The best thing about Liz is that the sillier, the better. So this owl outfit is not even a stretch. Love that.

The fair was great. Lots of things to look at, from letter press stationery, t-shirts and jewelry to posters, art pieces and clothing...all handmade of course. We did get some great birthday presents for friends and family and a couple things for ourselves. We could have spend A LOT of money here!

I bought two books. Of course got Trixie Belden. Little know fact about me:I loved reading Trixie Belden books when I was in the 3 and 4th grade. I really wanted to be Trixie and have a best friend named Honey and solve mysteries. So much so, that in the 4th grade I asked my mom if I could change my name to Trixie. She said no. Thank goodness, otherwise I would be like the Ocho Cinco of 1972 changing my name on a whim.
Anyway, back to the books...we had a great time digging around finding covers that matched up with people we know.

Loved Miniature Rhino
Very clever girl that Jessica.
You could stop at her booth to write a letter on this typewriter and put in a glass jar...she packs it up and mails it to the recipient.

Inside her booth...all kinds of mailers...I might have bought a couple.
Love her displays in the old drawers.

Jessica also makes custom samplers (they each have a typed personal note on the back)

Then we stopped by Beyond Wonderland.
Headband, wallets for everything, purses, etc
Love the quirky fabric

I even met the lovely, Danni from Oh, hello friend. One of my favorite blogs. Super nice.

One thing we noticed was some of the tents. We loved how people had sewn random fabric together to personalize or even create an entire tent top. This sure would make camping a lot more festive. I know I could use a little more "festive" feeling when I have to sleep on the ground.

So that's my report.
I would definitely go again.
It really was some of the best indie crafters out there. It was also great to meet the artists behind the work.

Here's a schedule for 2010.
There are only 2 more cities left on the list, San Francisco next weekend and Chicago in September.
With Additional Holiday shows in the same cities in December.
If you can't make it in 2010 it might be something to think about in 2011!

Lucky Day...it's when you get the first parking space at a busy store or when you find the thing that you have been looking for forever or it's finding a friend when you weren't even looking for one. What a LUCKY day.